The prior art reveals a variety of designs for boat utility platforms which are intended to hang over the gunwale of a boat, their purpose being to provide a convenient place for holding a boat user's accessories. Sometimes these platforms are general in their immediate purpose as in the case of the "boat organizer" described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,009 granted to Faunce on June 9, 1987; or the case of the "utility box" described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,619 granted to Mead on Jan. 31, 1967. In other cases, these platforms are more specific in their immediate purpose as in the case of the "container for fish lures" described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,775,895 granted to Jachim on Dec. 4, 1973; the case of the "portable tackle and bait holder" described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,271,624 granted to Peluso on June 9, 1981; or the case of the "fishing tackle boxes" described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,050,356 granted to Messmer on Aug. 21, 1962. In any case, these platforms are generally intended for relatively small boats with unfinished interiors such as aluminum boats, canoes and the like typical of what might be used by a recreational fisherman.
One of the problems with prior art designs is that they are not particularly adaptable from one boat to the next. Further, they generally fail to account for the fact that with a relatively small boat there can be a material degree of curvature in the gunwale and in the wall or hull below the gunwale, all in the immediate area where one may desire to hang the platform. These limitations can lead to difficulty with mounting the platform in a stable, level orientation.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved boat utility platform and a new and improved mounting clamp particularly suited for a boat utility platform.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a mounting clamp for a boat utility platform that enables the platform to be mounted in a stable, level orientation and which can accommodate varying degrees of curvature in the gunwale or hull of a boat.